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The Texas governor, Greg Abbott, has threatened to arrest Democratic lawmakers after they left the state to prevent Republicans from pushing through plans to aggressively change Texas’s congressional map, a move that is likely to see them gain seats in the next election.
At least 51 of the 62 Democrats in the Texas house left Austin yesterday, travelling to states including Illinois, New York and Massachusetts, in an effort to deny Republicans the quorum needed to hold votes. When the legislature convened at 3pm local time, Republicans were eight members short of the number required to conduct business.
In response, Abbott said he had instructed the Texas department of public safety to “locate, arrest and return to the house chamber any member who has abandoned their duty to Texans”.
Why did the Democrats leave? By breaking quorum, the Democrats have temporarily blocked the controversial plan sought by Donald Trump to redraw the state’s congressional maps, a move that would probably give Republicans five more seats in Congress.
More than 40 arrested at protest against Gaza war at Trump hotel in New York
More than 40 people protesting against the war and worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza were arrested outside the Trump International hotel in New York City yesterday evening.
The protest, organized by IfNotNow, a Jewish-American anti-occupation group, had begun earlier in the evening at Columbus Circle. Hundreds gathered under the banner “Trump: Jews Say No More” to demand an end to the war in Gaza and that the Trump administration pressure Israel to allow greater humanitarian aid to enter the territory, as health officials there continue to report deaths from starvation and malnutrition.
In a press release issued after the arrests, IfNotNow said the mobilization marked “the broadest tent coalition in the Jewish community against the atrocities in Gaza in the last two years, representing the vast majority of US Jews who are outraged by the actions of the Israeli government in Gaza”.
Why were the protesters arrested? Just after 8pm, the group began walking to the Trump International hotel. They gathered in front of the hotel, sitting in the street, singing and chanting. At about 8.15pm ET, New York police department officers began arresting protesters for blocking the street.
Central California issues evacuation orders after wildfire burns 72,000 acres
A huge wildfire in central California has threatened hundreds of homes, with blazes churning through the brush-covered hillsides in Los Padres national forest.
At least three people were reported injured, and more than 450 structures were under threat by the Gifford fire, officials said on Monday.
The fire had scorched more than 72,000 acres (29,000 hectares) as of Monday evening, after the blaze grew out of several smaller fires that erupted Friday along State Route 166 between Santa Maria and Bakersfield.
What else is happening? Billowing smoke from hundreds of out-of-control wildfires – most of which are in the Canadian prairies – have caused severe air quality alerts across Canada and the US. Detroit and Michigan recorded some of the worst air quality in the world on Monday, according to a ranking by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company.
In other news …
Jim Acosta, a former chief White House correspondent for CNN, sat for a conversation with an “AI avatar” of Joaquin Oliver, one of the 17 people killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school mass shooting in Parkland, Florida, in 2018.
Donald Trump has attacked Jaguar Land Rover as “woke” for its divisive rebranding strategy hours after Britain’s largest carmaker announced its new boss.
A Brazilian supreme court judge has ordered the house arrest of the former president Jair Bolsonaro for breaching “preventative measures” that were imposed ahead of his trial for an alleged coup attempt.
Stat of the day: some tourists and business travelers may face up to $15,000 bond to enter US
The US state department has prepared plans to impose bonds as high as $15,000 for some tourism and business visas, according to a draft of a temporary final rule. The bonds would be issued to visitors from countries with significant overstay rates, under a 12-month pilot program.
Don’t miss this: Hiroshima’s fading legacy – the race to secure survivors’ memories amid a new era of nuclear brinkmanship
As Hiroshima prepares to mark 80 years since the city was destroyed in the world’s first nuclear attack, 90-year-old Yoshiko Niiyama is one of a small number of hibakusha – survivors of the atomic bombings – still able to recall the horrors they witnessed. Registered survivors of the blast have fallen below 100,000.
Climate check: UN plastic pollution talks must result in ambitious treaty, leading expert says
Delegates at the UN plastic pollution treaty talks in Geneva must secure an ambitious global agreement so they can look future generations in the eye, one of the world’s leading marine litter experts has said. Prof Richard Thompson said decisive action was needed to protect human health and the planet.
Last Thing: Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson arguments from Marriage Story used to scare off wolves in Oregon
Audio from the film Marriage Story of Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver screaming at one another has been judged so upsetting it is now being used to deter wolves from attacking livestock. “Wolves need to know humans are bad,” a US Department of Agriculture district supervisor in Oregon told the Wall Street Journal, explaining the unusual strategy to save cattle.
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